"Fiat money is backed by men with guns; Bitcoin is not. So why should this thing have any value?"--Uber statist economist Paul Krugman.

Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Our Federal government: reducing the civil rights of citizens one amendment at a time

Yesterday I showed you how the Supreme Court has virtually eliminated your right to remain silent under the Fifth Amendment.

This is just the latest in a series of steps to completely erode the due process protections of citizens from the State.

For example, in April 2011, the US DOE mandated that all public schools and institutions of higher education lower their standards of proof to find someone guilty of sexual misconduct:

OCR also uses a preponderance of the evidence standard when it resolves complaints against recipients. For instance, OCR’s Case Processing Manual requires that a noncompliance determination be supported by the preponderance of the evidence when resolving allegations of discrimination under all the statutes enforced by OCR, including Title IX.27 OCR also uses a preponderance of the evidence standard in its fund termination administrative hearings.28 Thus, in order for a school’s grievance procedures to be consistent with Title IX standards, the school must use a preponderance of the evidence standard (i.e., it is more likely than not that sexual harassment or violence occurred). The “clear and convincing” standard (i.e., it is highly probable or reasonably certain that the sexual harassment or violence occurred), currently used by some schools, is a higher standard of proof.

Ironically (or not!), the OCR here is the Office of Civil Rights, which has now threatened every school and university in America with the loss of all Title IX funds if they do not give in to a reduction in the defendant's rights.

Then, of course, there is Michael Hayden of the NSA, who has consistently attempted to redefine the protections of the Fourth Amendment:

It was shocking to see the interview on MSNBC a few years ago with the former director of NSA, Michael V. Hayden, and hear him redefine the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. When asked whether NSA had violated the Fourth Amendment, Hayden said it had not. Hayden said "probable cause" was not the Fourth Amendment's standard for violating a citizen's privacy -- it was based on "reasonable suspicion."

So here is the scorecard:

1. The government does not have to extend to you the right to remain silent.

2. When it comes to alleged sexual misconduct the government does not even have to prove that it is "reasonably certain" that such behavior occurred to sanction you.

3. The government has reduced the standard necessary to violate your person and your property from "probable cause" to "reasonable suspicion."